In the waning days of the 2024-25 edition of Calgary Flames training camp, you could be forgiven if you hadn’t thought much about Justin Kirkland. That’s not meant to be a knock on Kirkland; he was likely signed to provide reliable veteran help for the American Hockey League’s Calgary Wranglers, and potentially be a short-term NHL call-up depending on circumstances.

Well, circumstances happened, and Kirkland played precisely zero AHL games in 2024-25. Despite a season-ending injury, there remains quite a bit of intrigue over Kirkland’s NHL potential – intrigue that arguably didn’t exist before the season.

Kirkland’s 2024-25 expectations

When the Flames brought back Justin Kirkland as an unrestricted free agent over the summer, the general perception was that he would probably be a really good forward for the Calgary Wranglers. Kirkland had previously been with the Stockton Heat for three seasons and performed really well.

After leaving the Flames organization in 2022, Kirkland managed to play his way onto the Anaheim Ducks roster, only for his first NHL experience to be marred by a pretty scary car accident that could’ve ended his playing career. Luckily he recovered well, but his future as an NHL-level player was unclear. Could he hack it in the AHL? Definitely – he was superb with Tucson in 2023-24 – but it was unclear if he could be more than that.

How Kirkland did in 2024-25

On paper, Kirkland felt like he could be a top six centre in the AHL… and maybe more, depending on how his season evolved.

Well, Cole Schwindt was claimed off waivers by Vegas on Oct. 7. Two days later, Kevin Rooney was wrecked by a hit from J.T. Miller two shifts into the Flames’ season-opener against Vancouver. Suddenly, the Flames were down two centres and needed to call somebody up.

Kirkland, one of the few Wranglers forwards with any NHL experience, was the first player called up.

It turned out really well. Kirkland had two goals and six assists for eight points over 21 games. Playing a mixture of centre and the wing, he found some chemistry with Ryan Lomberg and a rotation of wingers, and formed arguably the best version of the club’s fourth line. He even worked his way into the penalty killing rotation and was used in the shootout, too, scoring three times.

Kirkland suffered a knee injury in late November against Chicago that required season-ending surgery, so his audition for full-time NHL duty was cut short. But during his quarter-season on the big-league roster, he was very strong in the role he was asked to play. He was Calgary’s nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for perseverance and dedication to hockey.

Next season’s expectations

So here’s the dilemma: should a player lose their opportunity because they got hurt? (Sub-question: do the Flames have a better option for fourth-line centre than Kirkland?) Kirkland is a pending unrestricted free agent and he’s expected to be fully ready to participate in training camp. When he’s back from his knee surgery, will he be the same player he was last season? That’s unclear.

Could Kirkland, at the very least, be a good AHLer once more? Probably yes. Regardless of where Kirkland ends up in 2025-26 – Calgary or another organization – we’re less sure that he can recapture the NHL magic he displayed in October and November, but we’d love to see him given the chance.